KUALA LUMPUR, April 7— Electoral watchdog Bersih 2.0 urged the Election Commission (EC) today to lower the voting age to 18 years as part of the commission’s planned reforms.

The Bersih 2.0 steering committee said that such a law would be consistent with other laws about age limitations, such as driving.

“Youth today are better informed and should be encouraged to participate in the election process,” said Bersih 2.0 in a statement.

Bersih 2.0’s statement followed remarks by new EC chairman Datuk Seri Mohd Hashim Abdullah, who told local daily theSun that the commission was considering “radical” changes to the election process, including making it compulsory for registered voters to vote.

“Implementing automatic registration of new voters would eliminate the current but slow process of registering through EC’s mobile units, appointed Assistant Registrar Officers (AROs) and Post Offices,” said Bersih 2.0.

“Clearly current channels are not effective in clearing up the accumulating backlog of unregistered voters,” it added.

Among others, Bersih 2.0 also stressed on the need to reduce advance voters and to make them ordinary voters.

“A clear electoral reform road map is required otherwise such grand statement would be reduced to doubt-casting promises,” it said.

The polls reform group further recommended that East Malaysians living and working in the peninsula be allowed to vote for their constituencies in Sabah and Sarawak without having to travel back, adding that this should also hold true for West Malaysians living in Sabah and Sarawak.